Method of forming chain-stitches.



T. Gi. PLANT.' METHOD OF FORMING CHAIN STITGHES. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 3, 1906. @452645@ Pat'eusedxan. el, 1910.

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UNITED sTATEs vPATENT oEEicE'.

THOMAS PLANT, F BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO MANUFACTURERS MACHINE COMPANY, OF MONTCLAIR,

JERSEY.

NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OE NEW METHOD OF FORMING CHAIN-STITCHES.

Specication of Letters Patent.

Patented an. 4, 1910.

4Application ,-led August 3, 1906. Serialv No. 329,009.

Be it known that I,A THOMAS G. PLANT, a

r citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, 1n the county, of Suffolk and State of` Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Methods of Forming Chain-Stitches,

. of .which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is.

a specification, like characters on the drawings representing like parts.

This inventlon aims to provide a -novel method of forming and `setting what is known as a chain stitchfor'uniting substances or materials.

While my invention is applicable to stitches formed with any thread and for uniting `any materials -or substances it is particularly useful in connection with waxed thread commonly used in uniting several pliesor layersv of leather or other materials employed in the manufacture of boots and shoes, more especially in the formation of what is known as 4the inseam for uniting the insole, upper and its linings of a turn shoe or the insole, upper, linings and welt of a welted boot or shoe. This inseam may be and formerly almost universally,l was formed byhand with the aid of such common instrumentalities as a needle, awl and.

the like, although more recently generally formed with the aid of a machine known as a welter or inseaming machine. My

present invention, however, is capable of being .practiced either by hand or by machine..

.Because of the special applicability of my novel method to the welting or inseaming` f boots and shoes, I will disclose my invention as it may be practiced in that art and will point out the advantages asapparent therein but without limiting my invention either to the advantages particularly men- `tioned orfto the particular use referred to.

Prior to my invention, in the welting of boots and shoes the method of forming chain stitches, particularly by the aid of a machine first generally attempted, was what has come to be commonly known as the Dancel method, wherein a needle'was inserted through the lastloop of the chain-and through the work or materials, at the point desired for the next stitch, and received in its barb at the opposite side of the'work a loop "'oi" 'b'ight of thread which was thenv drawn back through the loop last previously formed, the new loop being drawn backward by the needle to tighten the last stitch formed by drawing the last preceding loop Vtightly against the' new loop reaching from the work to the needle, this tightening of the last preceding stitch servin to finally tighten and set the second prece ing stitch. This method was objectedto because in tightening andsetting'the preceding stitches wholly or travel around and through thework and around and in the barb-of the needle under the full tension or pull required for setting the stitches and this reeving or thread travel extended back through one or more of the stitches previously formed and caused a serious and sometimes'ruinous cutting of the work over which thethread traveled and of the needle. f In the making of a welt `shoe the insole is formed topresenta marginal shoulder located slightly in from the edge of thev sole and following the outline thereof and within this marginal shoulder the insole,l if of leather, is channeled by cutting a diagonal slit therein from the surface of the sole wood last and the upper with its linings are assembled over and about said last and are stretched or lasted intoy shape about the same'. The upper' and its-linings together with the welt stri-p are now drawn inward closely by the inseam, from outside of. welt, the upper" 'and its linings andthat portion of the insole which hes between the thelstitches of whichextend toward the edge thereof. This sole-is tacked p or otherwise secured upon the bottom of a bythe needle the thread was caused to reeve the thread where it reeved in the barb` of y.

to and .secured against said shoulder the welt through the shoulder andthe bottom of the channel, the

stronger, outer or fiesh side of the insole is cut through in the formation of the channel. Furthermore, in the commercial manufacture of boots and shoes, manufacturers employ as low a grade of insole as is possible not only to reduce the cost of manufacture but to make the shoe more flexible, since a soft, loose grained stock is most suitable for weltinsoles if they can be secured without cutting through the between substance. The principal objection to the Dancel method of forming chain stitches was that the extensive reeving or travel of the thread around this between substance and in the bottom of the channel due to the setting of the stitches by the needle caused the between substance to be frequently cut through, thereby ruining the insole. To obviate these objections, what is known as the Briggs 2 method was devised, the same being shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States to Henry Briggs, No. 461,793, dated October 20, 1891, to which reference may be had. The principal characteristic of this Briggs method, as commonly regarded in the art, is that the stitch instead of being tightened and set under the backward pull of the needle, causing the thread in the tightening action to travel forward through the several stitches and around the between substance and in the needle barb, is tightened or set while the needle is inthe work at the point,desired for the next stitch,

the tightening and setting pull being upon the supply end of thread at the opposite side of the work from the needle and being directly awayv from and perpendicular to the line of the` work. In other words, after the needle has been inserted through the last previous loop and the.- work the thread leading from the` thread supply to the last pre-v vious loop is pulled perpendicularly to the work to draw the loop that is around the needle against the material, thereby setting 'the preceding stitch, after which the .supply end, of the thread is carried around the needle to form another'loop, which is drawn backward by the needle through the work and .through the loop previously tightened,

about the needle. Before the new loop is cast about theneedle a suiiicient length of thread is measured off to furnish one leg or st-rand of the new'loop that is to he drawn through the `work and the last previous loop,

Vwithout any reeving in thebarb of the A needle.

The Briggs method has gone into exten- "sive use and vhas proven of considerable commercial value, but it has objections which I have Sought by my invention to overcome. In the Briggs method the last previous loop when tightened by the take-up or pull at the -said between substanceand through one or place, so that a looseness is left in. said last previous loop which is not taken out bythe stitch setting pull but by the subsequent needle pull, with all the objections attending the same, principal of which is the objectionable reeving and cutting referred to. In the Briggs method the stitches are tightened and set by pulling-upon a`single strand of thread, which passes-through the precedingloop to and around the needle and back to and through the same preceding loop and around the between substance and the tightening can only be effected by a general progressive travel of said single'thread about more of the succeeding loops. Thus, l, each loop in 4being tightened by another looppassed through it, is subjected to the frictional travel and cutting action of two A strands of thread traveling in opposite di- S5 rect-ions making it necessary to draw against a much tighter tension for tightening and setting the stitches than the vbetween substance when of soft and loose grained leather can resist'. This 4tends to eut through the between substance when not` reinforced with cloth and also weakens the loops attheengaging or interlocking joints. In the Bri gs method, furthermore, 'the tightening pul is transverse or perpendicular to the line of the S stitches and the work, andy while the chain of loops at the loop side of the stitch is lthereby drawn gradually forward toward the needle, as is the case in the tightening of any chain stitch whether by the needle or otherwise, it is accomplished only by the objectionable op osite andv cutting travel of the strands o the ,variousv loops as above Y referred to. j

My invention aims to overcome these and other objections to the yBriggs and Dancel methods, as'will be more particularly pointed out and referred to, and to enable my invention to be understood I will describe the same in connection with'the bestb embodiment 110 thereof now known to me, without, however,

limiting my said invention to the particular embodiment disclosed, for my invention, as will be apparent from thei following 'dis-` closure, presents many capable ofV being variously embodled. y

In the drawings the various figures, nunibered respectively 1 to 8, inclusive, illustrate Various steps in the formation of avchain stitch in, accordance with my invention, these 12C steps having been arbitrarily selected forv thepurpose of this disclosure.

In many, and probably all, instances the progression of the stitch formation is substantially continuous 'and is not marked nec- 125 essarily by well defined steps or stages to which the stitch formation progresses be` fore proceedin to the next. (It is desirable, however, for t e sakeo clearness, to' select various arbitrary positions or formations in P30 advantages, and isV 115,

order to make clear the method to be disclosed.

Referring to Figure l, the between substance is indicated at a,the`upper and linings at b and the welt at c, although so far as my invention is concerned and as hereinbefore stated any. whether connected with purposes, since my invention is not limited to boot and shoe manufacture. It is to be borne in mind that the between substance is required to serve as a base to withstand the entire pull required tosdraw the upper and linings which are under tension, andthe welt, closely and coinpactly against the marginal shoulder on the insole, since the essential of a welt seam. To accomplish this the between substance must not yield more than slightly to compress under the stitch tightening stress. Nevertheless the vbetween substance which is v required to withstand all this, is usually. of

a spongy and grainy nature and during stitch tightening is subjected to the cutting action of a single thread which is drawn lengthwise along its channel, under high stitch setting tension calculated to cause said thread to cut into or vthrough said between substance. The welt on the other hand stands away from the shoulder and is free to are to be confined thereby,

yield and move toward it; furthermore it is acted upon by the double strands of the en chained loops, hence the welt willwithstand any thread ftension or tightening action that it is possible to bring to bear upon it. Obviously therefore, that method of forming the inseam stitches is the best which best protects the between-substance. The usual needle is indicated at rl, the same being preferably used whether my method is practiced by hand or by machine, it being in effect merely one form of instrument by means of which the operative is enabled to reach through from one to the opposite side of the work for the purpose of drawing through the loops required in the formation of a chain stitch.

Assuming the line of stitches to be in process of fornxition, the last previous loop it being here shown as lying is marked l,

the needle by means of which loosely about it was drawn naving been moved relatively to lay said loop forward in the direction of stitch progression, so that the needle without being removed from said loop may be reinserted in the work at thepointdesired for the next stitch. As herein used, the term work refers to thev materials or substances in or upon which the ient as an abbreviated term for the general purposes of description. The needle is no'w advanced toward and to penetrate the work other materials or substances, 'j shoe manufacture or not, might as well be selected f or illustrative shoe is a tight and close in- I backward, the needle and work j stitch is formed andwhieh it being conven! j in part provided for i;` through the work by l j previous insertion of a usual awl e from the j opposite side of the lwork, said awl being i withdrawn in advance of the entering i needle. i

to the position for enannile indicated in Fig. 2, and a supply end 4c if thread running i from any suitable sourcc `of supply, for example the usual spool o;v cop, is carried to i and, preferably one and ne half times about t the barbed end of the needle ,to provide the latter with a bight of thread to be drawn backward through the work in the formof i a new loop. Before tho supply thread 4 is carried to and about the needle, as just stated, I prefer to place next the adjacent side of the work an instrument 5 to facilitate manipulation .of the thread 4 ata subsequent j period in the formation of the stitch, all though said instrument.- 5 is not essential. liike the needle and au l, it is a convenient instrumentality to facili .':ate the carrying out f of the method of stitch formation. Having received its light of Athread as in j Fig. 2, the needle is withdrawn or retracted i 'through the work and through the said last l preceding loop 1, see Fig. 3, drawing the new loop now marked 6 also through the work and through the said last preceding t loop l, the said loo i l giving up of its slackl ness to furnish su cient thread for one leg ofthe new loop as the latter is drawn backward by the needle. This, of course, causes a reeving of the thread around the work ,t and through the holes therein but this reevj ing is not detrimental because not under tension or against any resistance. The reeving j that is objectionable and that has beenhereinbefore referred to is the reeving under ten- The needle is advanced through the work ioo k sion or resistance suoli as involved in the fray and cut the thread where it plays in i the barb oftie needle. It is in this sense' that reeviiig s hereinafter referred to, that tension being referred oo merely as thread l, travel.

After havin i; pulled the new loop or needle loop as it will be hereinafter designated l through the w rk and through the last prel ceding loop-,.vas in Fig. 3, the single. strand l of thread Text nding about the instrument j 5 fronithe `last previous loop to the needle l loop in the chan iel or the between substance side of t-lie wor. is drawn away'from the work,see Fig. 4,-conveniently by means of said instrumeizt 5, thereby further to contract or shorten said last preceding loop l, to cause the latter to deflect or draw t-he nee-` dle loop 6 to one side, in the Adirection of the which is not objectionable and not under.

preceding stitches and forming what may When.practicedin a machine, the feedpof or convenience be termed a toggle in thework may conveniently be had through said needle loo The travel of the thread due to again nobjectionable.

In he further formation of the-stitch 'the single strand 7 of thread passing. about the instrumenc '5 is now released, either by releasing the strand if held in Ithe gers, or

by removing or retracting said instrument 15 wholly or to a position indicated in Fig. 5, and the slack thread 7 thus left by removal of the said instrument 5 is drawn through by the further= retraction of the needle to the position shown in Fig. 5, until the thread 7 meets a resistance by contact with the work. In the preferred embodiment of my invention the retraction of the needle ceases sub-- stantially at the momentof contact of the single strand 7 with the work.

The needle loop is now engaged or seized, i

preferablyimmediately above the last preceding loop, as in Fig. 6;`in-other words is seized as close to the work at the needle side thereof as is convenientl practicable, the seizure' being between the ngers of the operative or between two instruments, of which the instrument 8 may be one and a coperatlng instrument indicated at 9, another,or

they Imay be coperating members. of a sin-' gle instrument, as a pair of pincers or pliers, and said needle loop is first- `preferably lifted or drawn back away from the work, as indicated -in dotted lines, Fig. 6, and then and whether or not irst drawn back, said loop is carried bodily along the .surface ofthe work in the direction of stitch progression, and away from lthe previously' formed l .stitches suiiicient-ly to tighten said last preceding loop l and the second preceding loop 2 `about and upon the work and toset the third preceding loop 3, and any previous loopsthat may require setting, to their final condition of work compression and set, as indicated in Fig. 8. y

When lthe method is practiced upon a ma` chine, which for 4the greatest commercial, economy would be the case, the needle instead of being moved forward along the.f work would be moved to enter and recede from the work in an unvarying. line and the work wouldbe fed to and past 1t. yInsuch case the work feed would preferably occur,

in part atleast during the carrying over' of the seized loop.'

Having set the stitch', the needle loop is released and the seizing members, Aif `employed, are restored to ltheir normal positions as in dotted lines Fig. 8 and full lines Fig'. l, the process being repeated in the formation of a further stitch, as required. The remaining thread for each new stitch will ,be given u 'bythe source durin the. mani ulation of) the threadin the stitch formation and before the thread is'put undertension.

this de ection of the needle loop is the instrumentality of the awl, which, as is Acommon in machines for this purpose, is ,caused to ,penetratel the work from the side opposite the needle practically simultaneously with the retraction of the needle but at the tpoint in the work at which the`next stitch 1s, to be formed, and the work is then y fed to the left, past the needle by means of the awl, which does notl leave the work until after the needle has again entered it for the new stitch.'

The method as here disclosed may be con I chine properly organized and equipped andA of the well-known curve needle type, now commonly used in boot and shoe manufacture. A machine for this type and which is capable.of practicing this method is disclosed in application for United States Patent, se.' nti-335,903, filed sept. 2i, 1906, pending concurrently herewith. It will be observed in the formation of stitches by my improved method, as here illustrated, that when the seized needle loop is drawn bodily away from the work, as in dotted lines, Fig. 6, which herein is the first movement toward tightening the stitch, there is no resultant travel. or reeving of the single l thread 7 along the spongy between substance or in thebottogm ofthe channel. A

In the forward movement of the seized yloop. to the right, or in the direction of the closed end of the preceding loop to tighten and set the stitches, there isno substantial.

movement of the single thread 7 of the last formed stitch in or along the spongy between' substance; the thread movement being wholly in and between theneedle loop 6, the last preceding loop l and the second preceding loop It will be noticed, however, that in each of these cases the twostrands of the inclosed loop which is the loop drawn upon to draw the embracing loop along in a forward direction, rthat is, the two strands of the loop 6 acting in the last vpreceding loop 1, and the two strands of the last pre. ceding loop l acting in the second preceding loop 2, all move in the same direction and .to the right,.so that there is no seesawing action of the two strands ofthe drawing.

loop in the embracing loop which they are seeking to dra-w along, as in the Briggs and Dancel methods and which is so detrimental to the thread of the engaging loops. The carrying forward of the enchained loops at the needle side of the k)Worln wherebyrthe stitches are tightened and set is accomplished by my invention withoutssubstantial travel or reevirig of the single thread at' the oppo site side of the wor which is of obvious advantage.and,.so'far aware isliew with my invention. By :accomplishing this without reeving of the thread and without pulling upon the lthread atiany point in a direction substantially dierent from that in which .the tightening action is to take place, the strain upon the thread is not only reduced in itself but is received upon the plural strands working together, ratherthan upon single strands as heretofore and, because it is applied and directly received at the welt side of the work, acts more effectively to draw the latter into position to form atight seam than has been possible in prior methods of chain stitch formation.

When a pull is exerted upon the needle loop or upon the single thread leading from much more e v the source of thread supply -the pull can be no greater than the resistance opposed to the reeving of the thread through the needle barb or from the thread source, which in a machine is usually the tension applied to the thread leading from the source of supply. It is obvious, therefore, that my improved method permits a much more compact seam to be'obtained with a given thread tension than is possible 'by' pulling upon a single thread' and this tightening action is ilective on the looped or doubled threadside of the work or materials than upon the single strand or opposite side,

which is in boot and shoe work usually next the spongy between substance. Consequently, my improved method makes it pos,-

' iS-brought principally upon the preceding sible 'to obtain a more compact seam with materials of a given resistance or quality and thread of a given strength or equally satisfactory results with materials of lower qual- .ity and thread of less strength.l In the carrying forward of the loops the resistance loops enchained therewith and the welt macontradistinguished from the Briggs method,

and it will likewise be observed that this contraction of the. last preceding loop is aecomplished not bya pull upon the thread leading from the source,vas in Briggs and with the attendant disadvantages heretofore pointed out, but by a pull upon the' thread in a fully formed but -not yet tightened or set stitch.

Thusit will be seen that my invention as here .disclosed comprehends a number of .advantag .and novel features wh1ch,when

ycombined or used collectively, present aa method 'which may be practiced `with the greatest advantage and security both to the Work and to ithe .thread but which when 'availed of in part, thatis,l without the use or combinationof all the features, presents singly and collectively features of advantage which render m method superior to known previous meth s.

Having disclosed my invention as prac.

ticed in a method involving what I consider to be the most approved manner of practicing it, I have set forth in the appended claims the various features of novelty and' invention comprehended thereby and which may with advantage be availed of and practiced singly or collectively as the particular` work and judgment ofthe operative may,

dictate.

What I claim is 1. That improvement in the art qf'forming chain stitch seams consisting in drawing a loop of thread through the work, drawing. a second or needle loop through the work and also through the first-named loop, toggling or deeetin both limbs of said second or needle loop by rawing on the thread from the side of the work opposite the enchained loops to shorten lsaid first-named loop, and then engaging said second loop and carrying the engaged thread in the direction of the closed end of the first-named loop, or in the direction of ,stitch progression.

2. The method of forming chain stitches which consists in drawing a loop of thread through the work, drawin a second loo of the same thread throng the workan through the rst formed loop in advance of the point where the first formed loop passes throu h the work, drawing the limbs of the first ormed loop back through the work and then clamping both limbs of the secon loop and deiecting or toggling yboth limbs of the second loop in the direction of the stitch formation while so clampedto draw the bight of the first formed loo forwardly.

3. rlhe improved method o forming a' seam of chain stitches, which consists in drawing' a loop of thread through the work,

drawing a second loop of thread through the vwork and through the first named loop in advance of the point where therst loop passes through the work, drawing `back the vfirst formed loop to shorten the same and.

deflect the second loop backwardly,'and then engaging both limbs of the second formed loop between its end and the work and drawing thereupon in the direction of'the seam.

4. That improvement in the art of forming chain stitch y seams which consists in passing a loop of thread through the-Work, passing a second loop 'also through the work and through said tiret-named loop producing a deflection or toggle in the thread of said Intestimon'y whereof, I have signed my second loop, and drawing upon the thread name `to this specification, in the presence of at the single thread side of the seam to draw E t'f 'o subscribing witnesses.

back the rst loop as permitted by the de- I I THOMAS G. PLANT. 5 Hection in said second loop, and then draw- Witnesses:

ing on both limbs of the second loop to set y FREDERICK L. EMERY the stitchrj ROBERT Hl. KAMMLER.z 

